Field
The aspects of the present disclosure relate generally to an LED lead frame assembly, and more particularly to an LED lead frame assembly that is capable of being attached directly on a light fixture.
Description of Related Art
A light emitting diode (LED) is an electric light source constructed from semiconductor materials. An LED will generally include a lead frame and housing. The typical LED lead frame will have a pair of leads that are produced by stamping a metal sheet and then molding the LED lead frame within a plastic housing. An LED chip is bonded on one of the leads and wires are connected to the leads to establish the electrical connections.
The housing for the LED will generally include a cavity into which an LED chip is disposed and potted. Conductive leads or wires for providing power to the LED chip are mounted in the lead frame and connected to the LED chip.
General Solid State Lighting (SSL) applications typically require arrays of individual LED components to achieve sufficient light output. This is normally achieved by soldering individual LED components onto Printed Circuit Boards (PCB's) and then attaching the PCB's onto the lighting fixture.
Employing PCB's in SSL fixtures may pose certain disadvantages. For example, the costs associated with the PCB fabrication to form an LED light fixture can be high. Surface Mount Technology (SMT) processes to attach the LED components and the assembling of the PCB assembly onto the fixture adds cost and longer assembly or lead time to the manufacture of the overall light fixture.
Also, the high temperature of the SMT reflow process may accelerate aging and yellowing of the LED components. Compared to pure metal, PCB's have large thermal resistance (typically 2-5 K/W). This thermal resistance tends to impair thermal dissipation between the LED components and the fixture heat sink, resulting in reduced reliability of the LED's. While a PCB having a metal core will improve heat dissipation, a metal core PCB is an expensive alternative.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an LED array for Solid State Lighting applications using a lead frame that addresses at least some of the problems identified above.